Would you pay more for an organic wine? Demand is growing in Europe, especially among young, urban, high-income earners concerned about the environment. Many are willing to pay about €3 ($5) extra for an organically certified bottling.
About 10% of New Zealand’s wine producers are fully or partly organic. Compared with many other countries, demand here was slow until recently, reports Erica Crawford, co-owner of Loveblock Wines in Marlborough, but it is now rising. “Dedicated organic wine shops and restaurants, and retailers highlighting organic status on menus and shelf talkers, are happening more often.”
$25 and under
Decibel Hawke’s Bay Rosé 2022
This characterful, single-vineyard, merlot-based rosé was grown in the Bridge Pā Triangle. Bright, light pink, it has generous peach, strawberry and spice flavours and is fresh and finely balanced. (13% alc/vol) $24
★★★★
Greenhough River Garden Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2022
Grown on the Waimea Plains, this consistently rewarding wine is mostly handled in tanks; a small portion is fermented and lees-aged in French oak casks. Freshly aromatic, it is medium-bodied with intense, vigorous tropical-fruit and herbaceous flavours woven with appetising acidity, and has a dry finish. (12.5% alc/vol) $22
★★★★½
Loveblock Marlborough Pinot Gris 2022
This characterful, easy-drinking wine was estate-grown in the Awatere Valley and handled with some use of oak casks and concrete, egg-shaped fermenters. Light lemon/green with a fragrant, fresh, gently spicy bouquet, it is mouthfilling and sweet-fruited. It has vibrant peach, pear and spice flavours, shows very good complexity, a vague hint of sweetness and plenty of personality. (13% alc/vol) $23
★★★★½
Seresin Marlborough Pinot Gris 2022
This impressive wine was mostly handled in tanks, but 40% was fermented and lees-aged in seasoned French oak barrels. Invitingly scented, it is mouthfilling with generous stonefruit flavours, hints of spices, balanced acidity, and very good complexity, vigour and harmony. Already delicious, it is a fully dry style. (13.5% alc/vol) $25
★★★★★
Stoneleigh Organic Marlborough Chardonnay 2020
Ready to roll, this fully barrel-fermented wine was harvested from mature vines in the Wairau Valley. Mouthfilling, it has ripe citrusy and peachy flavours with slightly toasty and buttery notes adding complexity, fresh acidity keeping things lively and very good depth. (14% alc/vol) $20
★★★★
Stoneleigh Organic Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2021
Maturing gracefully, this full-bodied and lively wine has strong tropical-fruit flavours to the fore, a herbal undercurrent, lively acidity and a crisp, dry finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $20
★★★★
Villa Maria Earth Garden Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2022
This skilfully crafted wine is already drinking well. Mouthfilling and fleshy, it has fresh, ripe fruit flavours to the fore, savoury notes adding complexity, a hint of butterscotch, balanced acidity and a dry, harmonious finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $25
★★★★
Walnut Block Nutcracker Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2022
Hand-harvested in the Wairau Valley, this is a medium to full-bodied wine with strong, fresh passionfruit and lime flavours, threaded with appetising acidity and a dry, finely balanced finish. Full of youthful drive, it should be at its best from 2024 on. (12.5% alc/vol) $25
★★★★½
$50 and under
Clos Henri Vineyard Chapel Block Blanc de Noirs 2019
This distinctive Marlborough sparkling is worth discovering. From a single block of estate-grown pinot noir, the base wine was aged for 10 months in stainless-steel tanks and old barrels. After its secondary fermentation in the bottle, the wine is being matured on its yeast lees and then disgorged a few hundred bottles at a time (so there will be some bottle variation.) Pale pink/orange, it has a fragrant, strawberryish, yeasty bouquet. Full of personality, it has intense, peachy, spicy, yeasty, complex flavours that are vigorous, dry and lingering. (13% alc/vol) $45
★★★★★
Deep Down Marlborough Chardonnay 2021
This lovely wine was grown in the Wrekin Vineyard in the Southern Valleys and fermented and aged in French oak puncheons. Bright, light yellow/green, it is mouthfilling with deep, ripe stonefruit flavours to the fore, and finely integrated oak adding complexity, fresh acidity and lots of youthful vigour. A distinctive, finely crafted wine, it’s already delicious, and well worth cellaring. (13.4% alc/vol) $42
★★★★★ - visit www.deepdownwines.co.nz
Dog Point Vineyard Marlborough Pinot Noir 2020
This classy, finely structured red is estate-grown on the south side of the Wairau Valley, hand-picked and matured for 18 months in French oak barriques. Full, bright ruby, it has a fragrant, savoury bouquet. Mouthfilling and sweet-fruited, it has generous cherry, plum and spice flavours, gently seasoned with nutty oak, and supple tannins. Already delicious, it is a refined, graceful, harmonious red, likely to be at its best from 2025 on. (13.5% alc/vol) $46-$49
★★★★★
Domaine-Thomson Explorer Central Otago Pinot Noir 2022
Estate-grown at Lowburn in the Cromwell Basin, this “fruit-focused” red is designed to be “easily accessible” in its youth. Bright ruby, it is mouthfilling, generous and supple with strong, vibrant cherry, plum and spice flavours, savoury notes adding complexity and excellent vigour and harmony. Fine value. (13% alc/vol) $27-$35
★★★★½
Framingham Classic Marlborough Riesling 2022
Top vintages of this estate-grown Wairau Valley wine are strikingly aromatic, rich and zesty. Hand-picked from vines up to 40 years old, it was mostly handled in tanks, but a small part of the blend was barrel-fermented. Bright, light lemon/green, it is a medium-bodied, vibrantly fruity wine with fresh, vigorous, citrusy, slightly peachy flavours, gentle sweetness, good acid spine and a finely poised finish. Already delicious but still unfolding, it should be at its best after 2024. (12.5% alc/vol) $32
★★★★★
Greystone Organic Waipara Valley North Canterbury Sauvignon Blanc 2022
This highly distinctive sauvignon blanc was fermented and aged in old oak barriques. Bright, light yellow/green, it has a fragrant, ripe, complex bouquet. Mouthfilling and sweet-fruited, it has concentrated, tropical-fruit characters gently seasoned with oak, layers of flavour, balanced acidity and a dry, long finish. Full of personality, it’s a drink-now or cellaring proposition. (13.5% alc/vol) $32
★★★★★
Pyramid Valley Marlborough Sauvignon + 2022
This ripely scented wine was grown at three sites, principally the elevated Churton Vineyard in the Waihopai Valley. Fermented and lees-aged for six months in French oak casks, it is mouthfilling with fresh tropical-fruit flavours, shows very good concentration and vigour, balanced acidity and a lengthy, dry finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $30
★★★★½
Rock Ferry Trig Hill Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir 2020
This beautifully fragrant red was estate-grown 400m above sea level at Bendigo and aged for 16 months in French oak casks. Rich and silky textured, it has concentrated cherry, spice and nut flavours, and is notably complex and savoury. Already drinking well, it should be at its best after 2024. (13.5% alc/vol) $45
★★★★★
Stonecroft Gimblett Gravels Hawke’s Bay Serine Syrah 2021
This intensely varietal red is designed as an ageworthy wine that is also approachable young. Barrel-aged for over 18 months, it is full-coloured and fragrant with vibrant plum, spice and black-pepper flavours and shows good concentration, fresh acidity and supple tannins. Best drinking after 2025. (13% alc/vol) $33
★★★★½
Two Paddocks Au Naturel Central Otago Pinot Noir 2022
This striking wine was originally going to be called “Lazy”, because “it is made by doing as little as possible”. Estate-grown at Bannockburn and bottled with no added preservatives, it is a deep purple-flushed colour. Mouthfilling and sweet-fruited, it has strong, vibrant plum and cherry flavours, gentle spicy notes, supple tannins and a silky-smooth finish. Already delicious. (13% alc/vol) $50
★★★★★ - visit www.twopaddocks.com
Urlar Gladstone Pinot Noir 2021
Already highly approachable, this distinctive, savoury red was estate-grown in the northern Wairarapa, hand-picked, and matured in French oak barriques. Deep, bright ruby, it is fragrant, mouthfilling and supple with concentrated, ripe plum, cherry and spice flavours, finely integrated oak, gentle acidity and a well-rounded finish. (13.8% alc/vol) $45
★★★★★ - visit www.urlar.co.nz
Windrush Organic Marlborough Pinot Noir 2020
Offering good value, this ageworthy red was estate-grown near Renwick, hand-picked, and matured in French oak casks. Bright ruby, it is mouthfilling and savoury with strong, ripe cherry, plum and spice flavours and shows excellent vigour and complexity. Best drinking after 2024. (13.5% alc/vol) $33
★★★★½
Wrights Reserve Organic Gisborne Chardonnay 2022
This fleshy, concentrated wine was grown in the Ormond Valley and matured in new French oak casks. Straw-hued, it has rich, ripe stonefruit flavours strongly seasoned with biscuity, nutty oak, balanced acidity and a smooth, well-rounded finish. Already quite open and expressive, it’s a drink-now or cellaring proposition. (12.5% alc/vol) $38
★★★★½
Zephyr Marlborough Gewürztraminer 2022
This refined, single-vineyard wine was grown in the lower Wairau Valley and a small portion (5%) was handled in old French oak barrels. Floral and weighty, it has strong, peachy, citrusy, spicy flavours, shows a distinct touch of complexity and has excellent delicacy, depth and harmony. A youthful, dryish, vigorous wine, it should reward cellaring to 2025 and onwards. (13.5% alc/vol) $28
★★★★★
Over $50
Astrolabe Wrekin Vineyard Marlborough Pinot Noir 2020
This classy red was hand-harvested in the Southern Valleys and matured in French oak casks. Deeply coloured, it is powerful, highly concentrated and finely structured with dense cherry, plum and spice flavours, complex, savoury, vigorous and still extremely youthful. Best drinking after 2025. (14% alc/vol) $65
★★★★★ visit - www.astrolabewines.co.nz
Black Estate Netherwood North Canterbury Pinot Noir 2020
This refined, harmonious red was hand-harvested from the first hill-grown vineyard in North Canterbury, established in 1986. Fermented with indigenous yeasts, it was barrel-aged and bottled unfined and unfiltered. Deep, bright ruby, it is an elegant, medium to full-bodied red with concentrated, ripe cherry, plum and spice flavours, complex, savoury and supple. A top vintage, it should be at its best after 2024. (12.5% alc/vol) $70-$75
★★★★★
Carrick Organic Bannockburn Central Otago Pinot Noir 2021
This regional classic was estate-grown, hand-harvested from vines then 27 years old and matured in French oak casks. Already delicious, it is ruby hued, with mouthfilling body. Refined and youthful, it is very savoury, with deep, ripe cherry, plum, spice and nut flavours, showing excellent complexity, fresh acidity, finely balanced tannins and a long, very harmonious finish. Best drinking 2026+. (13.5% alc/vol) $51
★★★★★
Hans Herzog Marlborough Grandezza 2019
Promoted as New Zealand’s first “Super Tuscan-inspired red”, this is a notably refined blend of estate-grown sangiovese, cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon. Matured for two years in French oak barriques, it is a deeply coloured, authoritative, full-bodied red with rich, vibrant blackcurrant, plum and spice flavours, fresh acidity, supple tannins and a finely structured lasting finish. Classy, distinctive and full of potential, it’s well worth cellaring. (13.5% alc/vol) $99
★★★★★
Nanny Goat Vineyard Single Vineyard Queensberry Pinot Noir 2021
This deeply coloured red was estate-grown in the Cromwell Basin and matured in French oak barriques. Fragrant, mouthfilling and savoury, it has concentrated cherry, spice, herb and nut flavours, balanced acidity and a moderately firm, harmonious finish. Still very youthful, it’s well worth cellaring to 2025 onwards. (14% alc/vol) $57
★★★★½
Neudorf Home Block Moutere Chardonnay 2021
Grown in clay soils threaded with gravel at Upper Moutere, this very “complete” Nelson wine was hand-picked from mature vines and lees-aged for a year or more in French oak barriques. Mouthfilling, it is fresh and energetic with deep, vibrant, peachy, citrusy flavours, appetising acidity and a tightly structured, sustained finish. Best drinking beyond 2025. (14% alc/vol) $90
★★★★★
Quartz Reef Bendigo Central Otago Pinot Noir 2021
Enticingly perfumed, this estate-grown red was hand-picked from vines planted in 1998 and matured for a year in French oak barriques. Full, bright ruby, it is weighty with deep, ripe cherry, plum and spice flavours that are nutty, savoury and complex. A very harmonious wine, delicious in its youth, it’s also well worth cellaring. (14% alc/vol) $55
★★★★★
Villa Maria Attorney Marlborough Pinot Noir 2019
This arrestingly beautiful red was hand-harvested from a north-facing block with clay soils in the Southern Valleys, matured for 15 months in French oak casks and bottled unfined and unfiltered. Deep ruby, it is mouthfilling, sweet-fruited, complex and supple with a lovely array of youthful, ripe cherry, plum, spice, herb and nut flavours, a real sense of depth through the palate and a silky-textured finish. Best drinking beyond 2025. (14% alc/vol) $120
★★★★★
